Rotary engine.



G. SGEULZ. ROTARY ENGINE.

. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 27, 1909.' '939,751 Patented Nov..9, 1909.

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ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED PEB. 27,

ATTORNEYS GEORGE SCHULZ, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

RofrABY ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 9,- 1909.

Application led February 27, 1909. Serial No. 480,352.

To all whom it may concern;

13e it known that I, GEORGE SCHULZ, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Manhattan, in the county and State of lNew York, have invented a new and mproved Rotary Engine, of which the ollowing is a full, -clear, and exact description. My inventlon relates to rotary engines,

my more particular purpose being V,to provide a type of rotary enginein which an explosive charge i's first compressed by the immediate and direct action ofthe engine, and is then exploded so that advantage vis lvly invention further relates.- to provision for' exploding one charge whilev another charge is being compressed and thus made ready for explosion.

My invention further comprehends various improvements in construction, all looking toward the betterment of rotary engines and internal combustion engines.

Generally speaking, my engine comprehends a casing provided with a plurality of compartments used for compressing and exploding the explosive charges', the compartments, being maintained entirely separate asV regards the explosive mixture and the gases of combustion, yet the compartments serving" to add their effects as regards the turning of the revoluble member of the engine.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying 'drawings vforming a part of this specieation, 1n which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding partsvin all the figures v Figure 1 is a view partly in side elevation and partly -in section upon the line 1-1 ofl Fig. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows,

and showing one of vthe compartments to' gether with the valve mechanism associated with it; Fi 2 is a vertical section upon the line 2 2 o Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows, and showing a part of the general construction including the arrangement of the two compartments employed in compressing and exploding the charges; Fig. 3 is a vertical section upon the line 3 3 of Fig. 4, looking in the direction of the arrows, and showing a compartment difterent-from that appearing in Fig. 1; and Fig. 4 is a plan view ofthe engine.

A casing 5 is mounted upon a pedestal 6 and isprovided with radially disposed portions 6aforming spiders. The'casingis ur- .i

provided withspokes 8a, 8b, 8c. The wheell 8 being circular and the casing 5 having in cross section thev general form of an oblate sp'heroid, compartments 9, 10 are formed bevtween the wheel 8 and the adjacent portionsof thecasing. Slidably mounted within the spokes 8*?, 8 are pistons 11, 12 and compres sion springs 13, 14 which tend normally to force the pistons radially outward. The wheel-8 is keyed rmly. upon a shaft 15 which turns with it.

At 16 is a pipe for admitting water into the water jacket, 'and at 17 (see Figs. 1, 2)

'is` a pipe for discharging this water.

At 18, 19 (Fig. 3) and at 18a, 19a (Fig.

are packings.

An inlet :for an explosive m1xture 1s shown at 20 and an outlet for the gases of combustion is shown at 21.

At the top of the casing 5 is a wall 22, and above the latter are two compartments 23, 24 separated from each other by partitions 25. The wall 22 is provided lwith valve seats 25a, 26, 27 and 28, and these valve. seats are mated by valves 29, 30, 31, 32. For the purpose of guiding and handling these valves I provide valve` stems 33, 34, 35, 36 and encircling these valve stems are housings 37. Two spark plugs 38, 39 are provided, the spark plug 38 extending into the compartment 24, while the spark plug 39 ex tends into the compartment 23. These spark plugs are independent of each other to the extent that they actl alternately and, ofcourse, at different moments of time.

The valve stems 33, 35 are connected respectively with plates 40, 41,'the plate 40 being carried by acam rod 424 andthe plate 41 being similarly mounted upon a'eam rod 43. Theeam rods 42, 43 are provided at their lower ends with bosses 44, 45, and engaging these bosses are cams 46, 47, 'these cams being fixedrelatively to each other uponthe shaft 15 and so disposed that one occupies a position 180 degrees ahead of the other. -By this means the cam rods move independently and substantially in opposite directions, so

they occupy 1n Figs. 1 and 3 (the positions` being the same in both these views) the 'Y moved upwardly.. Since, however, the valvevalve 31 is open and the valve 29 is closed, these two valves being held positively by the action of the cams controlling them; the valves v30, 3 2 being free, however, to respond to such pressure as may be caused to play upon them, as hereinafter described.

The operation of my device is as follows: i/Vhen the engine is in the position indicated in Figs. 1 and 3, an explosion has just taken place in the vcompartment 23. above stated, the valve 31 is now open, the gases of combustion can readilypass from the compartment 23 in which the explosion has just taken place, through lthe valve seat 27 and into the compartment 10 at a point above the piston 1l. This drives the. piston downward and turns the wheel 8. -As soon as the piston 11 arrives at or near the bottom of the casing, the gases of combustion from the compartment l0 pass through the exhaust pipe 21 and make their escape. The descent of the piston- 11 thoroughly drives out any portion of the gases of combustion which might otherwise tend to remain in the compartment 10. This compartment is thus' thoroughly scavenged after each filling. In the meantime, when the Apiston 11 begins'to descend, the piston 12 (see Fig. .3) begins to rise andto draw in behind it by suction,

an explosive charge. Immediately in front of this piston (thatlis obliquely to theright above it, according 'to'Fig 3) there is in the compartment 9 an explosive charge left there by thepressure action of the piston' 11 acting preciselyl as thepiston 12 now acts. As the piston- 12 rises, thecharge infront'of it (that is above it) is compressed and is 28 is held down by the' yforce of the explosion, which has just taken place in the compartment 23, and is held down immediately after the explosion by the pressure of the gases of combustion withinthis compartment, the valve '32 is pressed tightly upon its seat and is unable to open. Not so, how-` ever, with the valve 30 in the opposite compartment 24 (see Fig. 2). This valve has no pressure upon its upper surface, and consequently is-'easily lifted by the compressed charge. passing 'upward from the' compartment 9. Hence, the compartment 24 receives a charge of the ,compressed explosive mixture, and immediately after this occurs the valvev 30 closes automatically. During the time while an explosive charge is being ,compressed into the compartment 24,

the valve 29 is raised of `its seat bythe action of' the cam 46 and cam rod 42, so thata portion of the explosive char e now passes through the valve seat 25 an against the piston which, in this instance, happens'to be the one numbered l2. The force of the explosion in the compartment 24 effectively parts.

Since, as

4fact thatl this valve is held open positively by the action of the cam and its lassociated The result isthat the Wheel 8 is again turned half a revolution, and in doing this it compresses another'charge within the compartment 9, the charge in this instance, .passing into. the compartment 23 instead o into the compartment 24. This cycle pf operations is repeated continuously. The compartments 23, 24 with their circumscribing walls, together constitute mixing chambers which also serve as explosion chambers.'

Thenigniters. 38, 39 are energized alternately so as to bring about alternate explosions yin the two mixing chambers, and as above described these chambers are alter- 4nately filled with explosive charges and vthey -act alternately after the explosions, in

the sense that first one of the explosion chambers directs a charge of burned gases vagainst one of the pistons, and then the other explosion chamber directs another charge of burned gases against the other of e burned gases passing downwardly through one valve and upwardly through This is because, at the instant when explosion takes place in one of the mixing chambers, Vthe adjacent valve lead` ing to the other mixing chamber is closed and held closed positively by the action of its cam, and owing to the packing 18 neither the force of the explosion nor the resulting gases of combustion can travel backwardly" (to the right according to Fig. 3) so as to affect any other valve or valves communi-- yeating with either or both of the mixing chambers.

It will be noted that when compression the (ase may be) yet there is no possibility takes place by aid of one of the pistons l1,

.12, the explosive charge'being compressed,

though extending throughout the compartment 9 and acted upon by a piston which reaches entirely across thiscompartment, is unable to pass through but one of two valves, and that immediately after each compression by one of the pistons, lthe otherpiston, in compressing a similar charge, forces it through the other of the two valves last mentioned. It appears, therefore, that one of the'explosionchambers, one' of the valves 31, one of the istons 11 and one .of the valves controllab e by pressure of an exploi.

sive charge are associated withl one another,

and that the'other'explosion chamber, theed within said casing and disposed inter- 4the purpose' o f opening when an explosion' Having `thus described my invention, I cla-im as new andA 'desire to secure by Letters Patent:

l. The combination of a casing, a revoluble member mounted therein and provided with pistons adapted to4 revolve bodily within said casing, a plurality of explosion chambers connected with said casing and separated from eachother, said explosion chambers being disposed abreast relativelyto the general direction of rotation, separate valve mechanisms for opening and closing com-V munication between each of said explosion chambers and said casing, and separate igniting devices for exploding charges contained in the respective explosion chambers.

2. The combination of a casing, a revoluble member mounted therein and adapted to be turned by pressure due to an explosion, an explosion chamber connected withv said casing and adapted to receive therefrom an explosive charge under compression, a pressure-operated valve mounted Within said explosionchamber for the purpose of opening' and closing 'communication between said casing and said explosion chamber, and another valve mounted within said explosion chamber and actuated periodically by power and independently of explosions, for

takes place within said explosion. chamber, and of closing after said explosion takes place.

3. The combination ofa casing provided -V with a plurality of compartments separate from each other, a revoluble member mountmediate' said compartments, said revoluble member being provided with pistons movable relatively thereto and so spaced from' each other as to be capable of extending into different compartments, a single explosion chamber common to said compartments', a valve so mounted as to be controllable by pressure of an-aeriform body for opening and closing communication between said explosion chamber and onel of said compartments, and avalve controllable i said explosion chamber and one voit' said compartments, means for actuating said valve, means for opening said valve positively by power andl independently of explosions occurring within said chamber, and another valve for opening and closing communication between another compartment and said explosion chamber, said lastmentioned valve being free to open under pressure of anexplosive mixture passing Ytrom said last-mentioned compartment into said -explosion chamber.

5. The combination of a casing having generally an elliptical form, a revoluble membermounted within said casing and separating the same into two compartments,

a pair'of pistons carried vby said revoluble member and adapted to enter opposite compartments vat the same time, an explosion chamber provided with ports for communieating with different compartments upon opposite sides of said revoluble member, a valve .for closing one of said ports, means for actuating said valvepositively by power and independently of explosions, another valve disposed intermediate said explosion chamber and the opposite compartment, said last-mentioned valve being controllable by pressure of an aeriform body tending to pass from said last-mentioned compartment into said explosion chamber.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE SCHULZ. Witnesses:

WALTON HARRISON,

EVERARD B. MARSHALL. 

